couldn't
Americancontraction
Usage
See care, contraction.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Many who hadn’t lost a house couldn’t imagine surviving a grueling six-year fight with an insurance company for money and the city for permits — let alone twice.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026
"Our ground testing couldn't exactly reproduce the environment Roman would experience in space, such as the absence of gravity," Bolcar said.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 17, 2026
When the states couldn’t come to a new agreement, federal officials intervened in mid-August, establishing guidelines to run through 2028.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
"I would find that I'd be down these really deep rabbit holes... it was like no matter how hard you tried to get out, you couldn't."
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
For the briefest, most crushing moment, Clare thought he couldn’t see the wandering spirit.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
